Semiconductor components are used in portable applications such as mobile telephones, portable computers, calculators, cameras, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), video game controllers, etc. and in non-portable applications such as mainframe computers, test equipment, automotive applications, manufacturing facilities, etc. In these applications it is desirable for the semiconductor components to have small form factors while optimizing their performance, functionality, and cost. An important class of semiconductor components used in these applications is current limit circuits. These circuits protect the semiconductor component during over-current conditions. A drawback with including current limit circuits in semiconductor components is that they use one of the semiconductor component's input/output pins which increases the size and cost of the semiconductor components while reducing their performance and functionality.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to have a semiconductor component that includes methods and structures for limiting current in the semiconductor component without increasing the number of input/output pins. It would be of further advantage for the semiconductor component to be cost efficient to manufacture.